Contents

In September 1993, G. Chad Perry III, an attorney in Paintsville, and his wife, Judy Perry, conceived the idea of establishing a medical school in Eastern Kentucky. Their idea gained supporters who also believed a medical school in Paintsville would eliminate the shortage of primary care physicians in the region. In February 1994, the American College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) was established in Paintsville. It was then renamed the Southern College of Osteopathic Medicine (SCOM) in September 1994.[5]

By August 1995, it became apparent that there was insufficient financial support to construct a school of osteopathic medicine in Paintsville. The executive staff of SCOM decided to merge with Pikeville College to save the available finances. In May 1996, SCOM became known as Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine (PCSOM). PCSOM received accreditation from the American Osteopathic Association Bureau of Professional Education on July 11, 1997.[5] The founding convocation of Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine was held on September 11, 1997, shortly after the matriculation of the first class of 60 students.[5]

In 2010, construction began on KYCOM new facility, the Coal Building. Construction was completed in 2012, and was officially dedicated on September 15, 2012.[6]

In 2011, when Pikeville College became University of Pikeville, PCSOM became the University of Pikeville Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine (KYCOM).

KYCOM looks to accept applicants who represent the mission of the school which is "To provide men and women with an osteopathic medical education that emphasizes primary care, encourages research, promotes lifelong scholarly activity, and produces graduates who are committed to serving the health care needs of communities in rural Kentucky and other Appalachian regions." Students who apply must have a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution, taken the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), completed and passed 8 semester hours in each category of Organic Chemistry, General Chemistry, and Physics, completed and passed 6 semester hours of English Composition studies, and completed and passed 12 semester hours of Biological Sciences.[8] KYCOM also offers programs to introduce prospective students in lower levels of education to the school and its mission. The Osteopathic Medical Scholars Program (OMSP) offers those incoming undergraduate freshmen who are accepted both a bachelor's degree and a degree of Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine by admitting them into KYCOM upon completion of undergraduate course work at the University of Pikeville, should they meet program requirements.[9] KYCOM also offers a program known as the Professional Education Preparation Program (PEPP). The two week on campus program educates high school students about the medical occupation. Students are introduced to KYCOM faculty and KYCOM students while engaging in lecture subjects at a pace for the program attendees to get a feel for the future of medical school.[10]

The first two years at KYCOM are vital to help the medical student learn system based courses as well as discipline science based courses. The education process at KYCOM allows for student exposure to increasing levels of courses to ensure mastering of previous and new concepts. These classes include those such as Anatomy, Biochemistry, Immunology, and Principles of Osteopathic Medicine. The classes have exams and lectures along with the COMLEX exams which students must pass to successfully complete their respected years whether first or second. KYCOM students, in year one, begin their practicing of doctoral skills on human models. During year two, students engage in practice under community physicians. Student doctoring skills and competencies are more thoroughly developed in clinical rotations during years three and four. The third and fourth years of the medical school student are mainly spent away from the medical school as students observe and practice under trained and registered physicians and surgeons to develop an understanding of where they might specialize and apply for residency training programs upon completion of their education at KYCOM. Some of the clinical rotations include Family Medicine, General Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, General Surgery, Emergency Medicine and Clinical Osteopathic Medicine. The rotation cites for students range from counties in Kentucky to other states such as Arkansas, Alabama, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.[11]

For KYCOM's class of 2015, the average MCAT score was 24, the average cumulative GPA was 3.5, and the average science GPA was 3.4. This has increased since 2011 when the average MCAT score was 21.97 and the average cumulative GPA was a 3.3.[12] KYCOM as an institution has had over 700 students graduate with their degrees as Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine since its establishment in 2001. Sixty percent of these physicians have been serving in the Appalachian region. KYCOM is ranked fourth in affordability compared to all other of U.S. private medical schools. Sixty nine percent of the school's graduates have gone on to be primary care physicians, the second highest of any institution in the country.[13] Two thirds of seniors graduating from KYCOM have been admitted to their first choice residency program, while eighty five to ninety percent of graduating seniors have gone on to one of their top three residency programs.[14] Governor Paul E. Patton, the president of the University of Pikeville, is the president of the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine as well. He is the former 59th governor of the state of Kentucky.[15] Dr. Boyd R. Buser D.O. is the Dean and vice president of health affairs of the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine.[16] Buser is a former president of the American Academy of Osteopathy, chair of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners, and member of the Kentucky Institute of Medicine, the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure, the American Osteopathic Association Board of Trustees and the Board of Directors of the Osteopathic International Alliance.[17]

With Pikeville College changing to become the University of Pikeville and the Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine being changed to the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine the decision to create a new facility for the medical school was made. Codell Construction Company was given the task of being the project's construction manager. The university received two $500,000 grants for the construction of the building, one from the Appalachian Regional Commission and one from the James Graham Brown Foundation. The university received a direct loan of $26.5 million from the American Recovery Act of 2009 part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Rural Development and another $10 million from the New Market Tax Credit which is part of the National Community Investment Fund (NCIF).[13] Construction and groundbreaking for the new building, which would be nine stories high and 84,000 square feet, began in October 2010.[18] The building was finished by September 2012. The building required $40 million to be built. The name for the building represents how coal mining has and still is the Appalachian region´s main powerhouse and how important the industry is to its people. The building contains a clinical skills training and evaluation center, high fidelity robot simulators, research and teaching labs, a gross anatomy laboratory, an Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine lab, lecture halls and classrooms, and a campus cafeteria for the undergraduate school as well which seats up to 375 people. The construction of the building allowed for 278 temporary construction jobs to be issued.[19]